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Titans Retrospective: Team History
(Open on the cover of a comic on the origin of Nightwing) Linkara (v/o): Some time around 1999 or 2000, my brother was collecting Nightwing comics. He was a huge fan of the character, primarily thanks to his appearances on [[Batman: The Animated Series|the Batman animated series]]. He took these comics, bagged and boarded them, and tacked them on his walls. Mostly, it was the cover of the crappy blue seashell-themed wallpaper in his room, but he'd still take the comics down and read them. And he would let me read them, too. I have not read many comics before, just the occasional one I found here and there. Anything I knew about superheroes came from cartoons or from word of mouth. That's how I heard about stuff like the Clone Saga, even though I had never actually read a single issue of it. It was in "Nightwing: Secret Files & Origins #1"... (Cut to a panel inside the comic, showing the Teen Titans) Linkara (v/o): ...where I was first exposed to a team that Dick Grayson, age whatever, had been a part of: the Teen Titans. Linkara: Hello, and welcome to Atop the Fourth Wall, where bad comics burn. However, for the month of March, we will not be looking at the worst comics ever made. We will be looking at the superhero team that got me interested in reading comic books. We'll see the ups and downs of that team and why I seem to care about them in spite of all the crap that's happened with them throughout their long history. Welcome, my friend, to "March of the Titans". (Various shots of comics involving the Teen Titans in some form or another are shown) Linkara (v/o): So let's get some stuff out of the way that I know some people are gonna be grumbling about. One, these episodes are not gonna be my funniest. This is not about me telling jokes, but I'll try to inject humor where I can. This is about me relaying my personal history and passions as a fan of a particular comic series, a series that got me to open my eyes and explore an entire medium of storytelling. Sure, I'll tell jokes, but that's only because I'm a snarky bastard. Two, no, I am not talking the animated series. Yes, the animated series is great, but again, that's not what we're here to discuss. We're talking about fifty issues of a particular comic series. If you're passionate about the animated series... (Editor's note: "DULL SURPRISE FOR ALL!") Linkara (v/o): ...or any other series, tell other people about it in your own way. No, we're talking about the team that began in 1999 and ended in 2002, the team that wasn't "new" and it wasn't "teens", they were just the Titans. And that brings us to number three: I'm not gonna talk about what came after it. Geoff Johns' 2003 "Teen Titans" book was all fine and good, but that isn't my favorite incarnation of the team, and there's a lot about it that I disliked, owing either to really stupid character development or him feeling the need to retcon elements of character motivation and history to fit his own view of how things should work. Linkara: It was still enjoyable, sure, but it isn't the book that made me the hat-wearin', comic book-reviewin', don't-care-about-no-movies-'cause-they-ain't-no-comics-lovin' guy you all see today. Linkara (v/o): However, the Titans as a book was always one that embrace its varied history, always tried to move the characters into the next stages of their lives and not just be "Well, let's reboot everything in ten years and hope nobody complains." That's why I started this series of videos to begin with. The 2011 reboot, despite originally hinting that there Teen Titans teams before, has now gone out of its way to say that their team is the first to ever be called the Teen Titans. And as a fan of what has come before, it is offensive to me and to its forty-plus years of history. Linkara: But before we can get to my favorite book, we need to talk about the team and what has come before. This week, we'll be taking a broad look at the history of the Titans, up until next week's feature: a miniseries called "The Technis Imperative". So let's dig into the history of the Teen Titans and figure just who the hell these people are. (''AT4W title sequence is shown; title card has the title song from the movie Hair playing in the background. Cut to shots of some Titans comics that Linkara had looked at in the past)'' Linkara (v/o): We have already seen the first appearance of the group, back in "Brave and the Bold #54". We've also looked at a Christmas issue, wherein they reenact in "A Christmas Carol" – poorly. But what else did the series have to offer? Were there other members, or was it just the Fab Five? Who were the villains they fought? Well, let's go all the way back to 1966... (Cut to a closeup of the first "Teen Titans" comic) Linkara (v/o): ...with the original comic series, the first issue of which they fought (reads text dramatically) "The BEAST-GOD of XOCHATAN!" Linkara: And people say I hate the Silver Age. How can I hate the Silver Age when there is a comic that features (holds up hands dramatically) the Beast-God of XOCHATAN?! (Cut to the opening page of the comic, which consists of a splash page that is turned on its side) Linkara (v/o): Albeit, one way is to force me to turn the opening splash page on its side in order to read the text. Linkara: (irritated) Damn it, 1966! I thought that was more of a thing in the '90s to be forced to (makes a turning motion with his hands) turn a comic on its side and take you out of the story! Narrator: They're here! Those kids with the super-hero beat... Linkara: I prefer the superhero turnip myself. This guide is not complete. Please finish. Category:Content Category:Guides Category:AT4Wguides Category:Transcripts Category:DC Comics